Underwater lighting unit



Feb. 4, 1930. w. A. MCKAY ET Al. 1,745,901

UNDERWATER LIGHTING UNIT Filed Feb. l5, 1926 2 SheetS-Sheet 1 BY M ToRNl-:Y

Feb. 4, 1930. wl A; MCKAY ET AL 1,745,901

UNDERWATER LIGHTING UNIT Filed Feb. l5, 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 1b/ Ox I az' l FIG- 6 ,o ATTORNEY PatentedpFeb. 4, 1930 p UNITED TET .AWIILIAM yAUeus'rI-ivn Mener, oEEssEX EELLs, AND DANIEL sNYDEE ensTIN, 0E Y vide illumination beneath the surface of a` EAsT ORANGE NEW JERSEY, AssIGNoEs To WE lconroEruLIo1\Lor PENNSYLVANIA UNDERWA'I'EE LIGHTING UNIT 'Atpicaton iea February 13, 192e. 'serial No. 88,044.

' This invention relates to an under-WaterV D D a c l under-Water illumination.

' An object of the invention is to provide a simple and compact under-Water lighting unit. f v

Another object ofthe invention is to provide a means of illumination beneath the surface of the Waterby the provision,k of 'an incandescent electric lamphaving the bulb immersedin direct contact with the Water. Another object ofthe invention is to provide yan incandescent `uI'ider-Water lighting unit having-the emitted light controlled.

Another object 'of thehinvention is to proliuhtinof' unit and the method of producing body'of Water by a1 gas-filled incandescent ,lamp 'of the concentrated filament type, 'hav'j ,ving the bulb of the .lamp in direct, contact Withthe Water and a reflector for directing a f beamofiight from the filament. Y

A further objectof the inventionis to provide a method of under-Water illumination by the immersion of'a' gas-filled incandescent electric lamp having the Wall of the bulbof a thickness substantially the same asfbulbs of the usual commercialy lamps. n

yIt is Wellknownlthat divers have for many "years labored under eXtremek diificultiesand often equipped With battery operatedlamps encased in pressure resisting containers.v y The .degree of illuminationl possible byrl'amps of this; type Was, ofcourse, limited and the lifef-offthelamp Was'short.l Further oiforts were made 'to providea greater amount Vof light andincandes'cent-lamps ofthe vacuum type having electric energyvsu-pplied froma source above-'the surface ofthe Water Were put into operation.;

" Theaincandescent lamps: used were necessarily of low Wattage inasmuchfas'it Was Y fthought necessary to carefully protect them ,from direct contact With the Water by elaborat'e'ffixtures -ofglass and metal.. yUsually these fixturesV were so constructed .that the s'rINGHoUsE LAMP COMPANY, Alf

lightr'of the lamp was emitted in 'all directions around the side in order that all the possible illumination. might be obtained.

This general and-"uncontrolledl emission'of the light Was to some extent a detriment-tol the diver in that the light reflectedy through the glass of his helmet and the direct glare somewhat hindered rather than helped his vision. p The great need Was fory more light, particui larly more useful light, i. e.,"more light on.

was also of vast importance.v

the Work, and, asin the use of alighting unit f under'any'conditions,the control of the light In attempting to secure more light Wthf the vheavy type of y'fixture heretofore used by employing ,alamp of over Y or 200 Watts,great diiiiculties were encountered. A Thefact that the bulbwas enclosedA resulted f -inthe`generation of heat to such an eXtentf Vthat even Yin these relatively small Wattage 'lamps difficulty 'was experienced: in vavoiding the detrimental effects upon tlie'fixture and especially upon the water-tight connections. It also'follovvedthat any increase in 'the' Wattage of the lamp Would mean an'increase in the size of the bulbjvvith a consequent Venlargement of the fixture so that When appr'oachingf500 Vto 2,000 Watts',` the neces'- sary housing rWould reach such proportionsf as tobeco'meY absolutely impractical and beyond usefulness as alitoolv for manual hanp -.dling. 1 Y Y Regarding the control of the beam of light,

@for .example by means of a reflector, this obviously Was impossible from a practical Y standpoint With the fixtures'heretofore eine ployed, as is-evidentfrom the fact that the y (proper proportioned reflector vvereused ,with a given Wattage lamp, the added Weight therefof. togetherwith'the necessary sizeof theY housing orffixtureto accommoldatethe same. Y, Would only l go toincrease the bulkiness of fthe device.

The small degree of illumination. attained `by, one of the low Wattage lamps, as hereto- .fore employed, is exemplified by the ,fact that more than one'of'such lamps were used,it

being'thepractice to use groups of three in order to attain any appreciable amount of light at the depths where they were used.

For many years divers have worked under adverse conditions by reason of the lack of proper under-water illumination and the need of not only more light but properly vdirected light was well recognized, which need was not satisfied until the event of the present invention.

In solving the problem and in removing all the above mentioned disadvantages, the applicants experimented with and found that a lamp known in the trade as the C type or coiled filament type gas-filled lamp could be operated in a highly eflicient manner while submerged with the bulb thereof directly in contact with the water. A bulb of spherical shape was selected as having a construction capable of withstanding the water-pressure and it was found that a bulb of the usual com mercial wall thickness would withstand pressures atI depths of 300 feet or more. This was contrary to what any one had heretofore thought possible inasmuch as it was believed that a heavy casing Vwas necessary and furthermore that a bulb of the concentrated ilament type would develop a temperature so high as to cause cracking when placed in direct contact with a cold liquid. Although it was found possible to use a bulbof the same glass composition as that ordinarily used in the commercial typeof lamp, a greater degree of success was obtained witha bulb composed of a glass having a relatively low coefficient of expansion. The glass used was Vthat known inthe lampart as hard glass or pyreX (Gr/702.?) ,TvVith' a glass of this compositiom'highVwattage lamps may be employed and the filament thereof may be lighted either before or after the 'lamp Vis submerged, or if'desirable the lamp may be turned on and off while beneath'the surface of the Water without any disadvantage with respect to cracking due to too rapidexpansion or contraction. Y Y

kBy reason of their newruse of agas-iilled incandescent lamp, the applicants,in a measure, revolutionized under-water lighting conditions. Their complete elimination of any encasing or housing about the bulb not only resulted inthe provision of an Vextremely simple and easily handled lighting fixture.

but by placing the bulb of the lamp in direct.

contact with the water, it was found possible to provide illumination suflicient for a diver to have a range of vision offrom 20 to 80 feet at depths of over 200 feet, as with lamps of 1000 watts, or of an even greater range of vision whenusing higher vwattage lamps. Y p' Y Y In addition tothe increase in light, the use of the bulb indirect contact with the water made it convenient to employ a standard parabolic reector so that a beam of light could be properly projected and the fixture Y on line IIe-II in Fig. l.,

the unit shown in Fig. 6.

handled in an effective and practical manner.

The under-water control ofl the beam ofk kamount of lightand furnishes means for concentrating and directing the light in a manner never heretofore possible in'underwater illumination. Y

Owing to the cooling action of the water upon the bulb or sealed envelope of the lamp, it was found that the same could be made of a capacity appreciably less than was heretofore possible with lamps burned in the atmosphere. This reduction in the size of the bulb is obviously an advantage not only from an economical standpoint but by reason of the fact that itresults in a reduction size of the unit.

Various other advantages are attained by vreason of the present invention and the same will be hereinafter'pointed outtogether with novelV structural features more clearly understood by reference to the accompanying draw- Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view taken Fig. 3 is a fragmentary view of the lamp shown in Fig. 1 partly in vertical cross-section. f Y Fig. 4 is a fragmentary view` of a portion of a lamp similar to that shown inv Fig. land showsa cable with a socket to permit a removal of the lamp from the cable.

Fig. 5 is an elevational view showing the lamp with a reflector applied thereto.

Fig. 6 is an elevational view ofthe present in the invention and shows the lamp illustrated in Fig. l having a reflector and' gripping handlev mountedlthereon.

Fig. 7 is a front ViewY of the lighting unit shown in Fig. 6 looking toward the bulbpro jectiiig from the reflector and Fig. 8 is a longitudinal sectional view of As illustrated, they selected embodiment of the invention may comprise a lamp l() having a glass bulb ll of spherical form and of substantially the 'same thickness as that 'of the usualv commercial lamp vof Vthis type; The size of the bulb, however, that is the distance of the diameterronlineX-X, .is appreciablyless than a-lamp of the same wattage when burned in the atmosphere. For eX- ample, a bulb Vfor a 1000 watt lamp would have ardiameter of 5 inches whereas the'same wattage lamp used for under-water'bulbs may have a diameter of '3% inches.V lamp as illustrated is providedwith` the usual 'concentrated or coiled type of filament`l2.

Tlie

"PQSS' t bie later described;'altheuehgit has i.. Y

sleeve 2l and is so proportioned as to itthe n'aryi lengthl may befusedsuccessfully.A lf

desirable the lamp empleyed' may be. nubes/ed; c

bnt it has been found preferable to Vuse, Athe id metallic base 'le' and' to 'secure Welding or soldering or any other i suitable mannerl, thiis connecting; k,the v conductors l15 v andrl' Withle'ading-.in vvire 2Ov and :201 of the 'bulb'. I Although the standard' Viorm of baseis l fsliovviibit will beevidelitlthat the sameis yno me@ theirapreeectivejcpvf for theA tipped.

v coiildoflf coiiij'sefbe of: suitable4 shape andl constit'utefaprotective"cap; f

:in a rubber orothers'uitable Water-proof ina-` trial l''to constitute'a cable 1 8*A which A'serves n asa ,conductor onsupplying.electrical enveig/y:tofthe-tilainentliront any suitable source, as ja' generator '(notshown). f ld`or.they pur-` pose ,of excluding` any Water or otherfliquid,

. in -vvhich the ,-lampfmay Vbefimmersed," from i, contacty with the connection or electrical convvchi'ctors between .theA covering' of the cable and the lamp, a ieXible sleeve 21 is provided.

z Yrl`his sleeve mayfbeyof any suitable'elastic insulating materiall and it has been `found prefe'rable to use soft.. rubber'.` The sleeve may Ahave any. desirable'shape and-:be adapted to .Y closelyV engage lWiththe` neck of the 4bulb 'and vWitha portion lof the cable adjacentl to the lamp base.` The sleeve Shown in the dravvy ing' is of tubular form, having athickened i i tact with' the liquid surroundingthe lamp are Vportion 22 intermediate relatively thin portions 23 and 24. rThe portion 24 4 ismade to tightly't the outer lsurface of theycable 18 and may` ber'vulcanizedl thereto or securely i cemented or bonded in any other suitable manner. yThe ythickened portion 22 snugly fits thelbase orl protective cover portion of` the lamp and the portion 23 tightly engages the neck 13 of the bulb l1.

be relatively long asshown to provide a long contact or bearing surface for theportion 23 of thissleeve. Bv kmeans of r thissleeve any y enclosure is 'provided about the connection between the bulb andthe cable, that is all elec tricral conductors Which might come in convenclosed in a Water-tight enclosure. When the lamp is immersed inthe Water, the .pres-VV sure thereof holds the sleevef2l or' enclosure .firmly in Contact Withthe bulb 'andlother j parts tobe sealed against the Water.V i' f A lamp having a sleeve asvabove 'described' applied thereto maybe 'used as a unit-topro@v vide 'illuminationibeneath the surface of the Water, but

The neck may itis found desirableyto provide means 'for controlling or directingthe beam u 'o'iV light in 'a' `given .direction as by the useof a reector. Forthe purpose of mounting "bbdi'esfthe op y A y y vided with a suitable'"screen 44 offvvir'e `mesh ia reiectr in operative relationto the .bulb l1', a rigid casing 25 is provided to enclose the y about a 10G() Watt is disposed Withjan end 26 in y .A Contact with upper'portion oi' the'sleeve "enlarged portion 22'thereoi'. This .casingl when used m `connection with lamps'uptoy 2l. lin higher Wattage'lamps, howeveijthe;V

.casing entirelyfencloses theupper portion of the sleeve and -theiedge thereof isdisposed in Contact with the glass Wall of the bulb', for

the yreason that in the higher Wattage lampsy thelower portion of the `rWal-l of the bulb,

- Whichv isenc'asedffrom the coolingaction of the Water, VWould-"reach la temperature jsufli clentto melt the. rubbersleeve.- The opposoi vsite end27'of' the casing 25 is provided with a screw plug'28'havinga.clamp 29 vsecured lthereto bysmeans of whichthe cable 18 may be clamped to the casing 25'and the same held in its'.v proper position relative lto thek bulb.V Y

yThe 'casi/ng 25 serves as' a-stiiening member between the cable andthe bulb "as Well asa vmount for aV reflector;

I .f f n Ane casing-1s provi 'against the sleeve 21. The.. casing25 tlierel.l

the corrosive-action of thewater.'L Ilhereilec-y tor 'maj/ be Aof the parabolic type yfor the di; re'ction-offparaliel' rays of a'beamfoic light'andj` having an extension 33. The reiector 32 :E "have anaperture 2A tQLireceiveasplilt entere :nal'lyfthreaded' collarv, which may have ya to engage the `inner surface'ofl the relectorf-l Casing' 25 may be disposed in and havea slidable iit with theinteriorof'the sleeveb anda clampingnut 3T' iss'creived v J` `ron tothe col'l'art hold the yvallof the reflect'o'ragainstfthe 'Harige 7. The .reflector and collar"may thus be adjusted vupon the casing 25 until theiilament l2 of the lamp isfinthe properffocal"position, i W'hen in such' povsilnl tion, a nutl having` a'slightly lesspitch amete'r'J'fthairlthatjof the'y collarf` mayfbje reen, the cellar, beingslgg-htly fia-,-

u Y u v y dedvvith-apertures311" yto permit theentrancelof Water for the 'cool- 'ingedeet and the `application Vof pressure pered lusual manner.. toVv clampV the samer Y' uponpthe casi-ng 25 holding the reflector in thegprop'er adjusted position., f f

of the extension32of the reflector-.I f The hanr Y125 .e i-

clainpfll to-tlie'c'asinlg 25' so as to permit the kconnected to the cable 18.

which the base 14 may be screwed.

unscrewing from the socket andv another re- If desirable, the casing 25 may beV placed. removed and the upper portion 23 of t-he sleeve may be stripped doivn to facilitate the removal of the lamp.

In assembling the various parts in the water-tight sleeve 21, it is found desirable toV lubricate the parts Well With a lubricant such as castor oil which not only facilitates the Y assembly of the parts inthe sleeve but acts to some extent as a seal against the entrance of the Water. y f

By the use of an incandescent lamp in which the bulb is directly in contact With theV Water the metallic or other relatively heavy structure of the unit may be of a Weight only slightly greater than the buoyancy of the bulb, thus the use of the unit is more convenient for deep sea Work. VIn lamps in which a bulb is encased in a Water-tight compartment the casing is not only cumbersome, but in addition, aconsiderable ,amount of y Weight mustbe added to overcome the buoyancy resulting from the large capacity of the air-tight compartment. lThis, as Will readily be appreciated, makes an enclosed lamp, as heretofore provided, Wholly impractical,

Whereas the present unit may be handled With the same ease and eihciency as accompanies What is claimed is:

1. An under-Water lighting unit comprising a bulb having a filament therein,a conductor for supplying electrical energy to said filament, connection between said conductor and said filament, an elastic sleeve surround-- ing said connection, a rigid casing surrounding said sleeve, said casing having aperturesv to permit Water pressure against said elastic sleeve to hold the same in Water-tight relation with said connection. v

2. An under-Water lighting unitl comprising a bulbhaving a filament therein, a conductor for supplying electrical energy to said filament, connection between vsaid conductor ing said connection, a rigid casing surrounding said sleeve and provided [With apertures Y .80 and said filament, an elastic sleeve surround-fA to permit Water pressure against said elastic sleeve to hold the same in Water-tight relation Cal with said connection, anda reector mounted on said'casing.

In testimony whereof, We have hereunto subscribed our names this 11th day of February 1926. Y

WILLIAM AUGUSTINE MCKAY. DANIEL SNYDER GUSTIN.

the use of the ordinaryflash lamp found in f every day service. Y. Y

The importance of the present invention will be further recognized when it .is appreciated that it is only possible for a diver to actively engage in his under-Water Work for a relatively short time interval and that the amount of Work he mayperform is to a large the same.

i Vlamount of light and the light beinguncon-Y extent dependent upon the lighting facilities as Well as the ease or convenience in handling cumbersome fixture Which gave only a meager trolled could not be directed to illuminate distant objects, considerabletime Was thus l lost by the diver in groping from onevplace toV another, Whereas'by reasonV of the present invention he is able to direct his energies in an efficient and time-saving manner. l

Althoughl a preferred embodiment of the I-Ieretofore With the heavy and invent-ion is shown Vand described herein, it

is to be understood that modifications may beV made therein Without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as Y set forth in the appended claims. 

